School breakfast clubs delayed until 2026 as concerns over readiness grow

The breakfast club initiative, first announced at Labour’s October conference, was to begin with a £7 million pilot programme across 750 schools starting in April 2025. However, the Department for Education (DfE) has now announced that the pilot phase will be extended until 2026, with no confirmed date for a national rollout.

A government spokesperson said: “No final decisions have been made on timings for national rollout. Once the pilot starts this April, we’ll look at the learnings and set out our plan for national rollout as soon as possible.”

Currently, about 77% of primary schools in England offer breakfast clubs, but only 13% provide them free for all pupils. Under Labour’s manifesto pledge, this scheme was to be fully funded and universally accessible.

School leaders and education experts have highlighted significant challenges in implementing the programme. Many schools report being overstretched, with insufficient resources to manage additional services.

Jonny Uttley, chief executive of The Education Alliance Academy Trust, said: “The idea of breakfast clubs is something we hugely welcome — but no one should be under any illusions about how thinly stretched schools are already. If this is going to work, it needs to be done right.”

A report by the think tank New Britain Project echoes these concerns. It warns that without careful planning and clear guidance, the breakfast club programme risks repeating the failings of the National Tutoring Programme, which faced criticism for poor delivery despite its £1.1 billion investment.

Anna McShane, director of the New Britain Project, said: “What does universal provision mean? What will children eat? Who will staff these clubs without pulling resources from other areas? These are basic questions that remain unanswered.”

A significant barrier for schools is staffing. Breakfast clubs require early starts, which many schools say could add strain to already overstretched teachers and support staff.

Dave Ellison-Lee, interim CEO of the Rise Academy Trust, which manages 26 schools in the East Midlands, said: “The ability to staff at scale for universal breakfast clubs could also be tricky, with many staff usually having their own children to get to school. Recruiting for a potential 7am start will be a challenge.”

Financial concerns are also mounting. While the £7 million pilot is intended to provide funding, schools are wary about ongoing costs and uptake uncertainty.

Ellison-Lee added: “Without real clarity in the intended uptake from families and any funding provided for this, it has the potential to put further pressures on school finances.”

This delay comes just weeks after Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced plans to triple funding for breakfast clubs to £30 million for the 2025-26 school year. Labour has pledged to allocate £315 million for the programme by 2028-29.

At the time, Reeves said: “We think [the pilot] will help with the national rollout from next September to allow some schools to go first and to try and make sure that it works really well in making sure that every good child gets a really good start to the day.”

However, education unions and analysts have raised questions about whether this funding will be sufficient to address the scale of the challenge.

Laura Trott, the shadow education secretary, criticised the government’s handling of the delay, saying: “It’s not a surprise Labour’s plans are once again all over the place. But even more obviously missing in action is any plan on how to raise academic standards in schools, which is what will benefit disadvantaged children the most.”

The government insists the delay will allow it to gather insights from the pilot scheme and ensure the programme is fit for purpose. However, school leaders and families will be watching closely, as the initiative has been positioned as a lifeline for working parents and a critical support for children’s learning.

With breakfast clubs now postponed until at least 2026, many schools and families may be left wondering how and when this key policy will take shape.

Read more:

• Health experts want to ban biscuits and cakes at school lunch—here’s why it matters
• 40% of working parents are ‘pulling sickies’ to care for poorly children, new study finds
• More families are choosing home education – but many feel forced into it